Barça's bulletproof Neymar deal comes under fire

Barcelona reached an agreement with Santos last season in order to sign Neymar. Sandro Rosell travelled to Brazil in person to put a stop to the imminent signing of the player by Real Madrid. Not only did the Barça president put a damper on the deal, but he also managed to tie down Neymar.

Rosell reached an agreement with both the player and his current club, Santos. He committed to paying ¤40 million to sign the player in the summer of 2013 or in 2014. Until then, he can continue to play for the Brazilian club, allowing him to be there until the World Cup is played.

In order to convince Santos to sign the agreement, Barcelona put down a ¤10-million advance towards the full price of the transfer. A penalty clause was also signed to prevent the Brazilian club from giving in to pressure from other possible buyers.

However, things may not be so simple. The agreement between Barcelona and Santos was made a year ago, and several big clubs have been following Neymar's progress in the meantime, including Real Madrid and Manchester City.

The interested clubs are studying the validity of the contract, in an attempt to find a way around it. According to some legal experts, if the document is brought before a court, it could be declared null and void.